A Wedding To Remember

Candy WestGreen was hyperactive, making sure that the wedding preparation was nothing short of perfection.

She checked the kitchen and smiled in approval as she saw the chefs were busy doing what they were paid for.

The two families had agreed to have a small family wedding in the presence of the priest. So, even though they were extremely wealthy, it was just a few people that were in attendance… just a few people that mattered.

“Where's your sister?” Tony WestGreen, her father, asked. “She's supposed to be beautifying herself right now. I checked her room, but she wasn't there. The make-up artist arrived a couple minutes ago, and he's been waiting for her. He's beginning to get irritated.”

Danny stepped out to walk her dog. It was something she was used to and insisted on carrying out her usual routine, even though it was a special day for her.

Before Candy could answer her father, two men ran in, panting.

“Candy, Candy…” One of them called as he tried to steady himself by holding his chest. With his hands on his knees, he looked up at them, fear and worry written all over his face.

Tony held the young man by the shoulder and helped him to stand properly, “What's the matter?”

“It's Danny!” He declared and fell on his knees.

Candy's eyes widened at the mention of her twin's name. 'Didn't Danny go to walk Robin?’ She thought aloud. Robin was the name of the dog.

Robin was especially fond of Danny and wouldn't let any other person walk him. So even though Candy had offered, Danny turned down the request.

“What about Danny?” Candy retorted with a shaky voice. She said a silent prayer and hoped that Danny returned safely. The truth was that Danny was already hours late, but father and daughter tried to appear less worried, so as not to alert anybody.

“Danny is dead!” The other young man said. He was panting and shivering and anybody could tell that he was panicking.

Candy's first reaction was to laugh out loud until tears began to form in her eyes.

“This joke you're trying to crack is very expensive. Please, don't say such things on my sister's wedding day. She isn't dead, she just went to walk Robin.” Candy shrugged and stared at her father who looked at her like she had lost it.

“I said Danny's dead! She's dead! We saw her dead body at first, but when we went to seek help, we came back and couldn't find her body anymore.”

There was silence for a minute or two. This was when realization dawned on Candy.

Candy screamed and fell to the floor. She began to roll and pull on her clothes as though she wanted to undress in everyone's presence. Tony grabbed her and took her to her room. He closed the door behind them, to shield off any noise.

“What's happening, father?” Candy asked in between sobs. “This can't be true, right? I'm dreaming, I'm dreaming,” she repeated. She pinched herself and felt the pain. It was obviously not a dream. Her twin was no more.

Tony invited the men into Candy's room.

“You mustn't tell anyone about what has happened,” he said with a faraway look. It seemed as though his soul left his body. “Take this morning, and take this information to your grave.” He said with finality in his voice.

The two young men exchanged confused glances, but they still took the money.

“But, sir…?” One of them began but was cut short by Tony.

“Where's her body?”

“Her body was nowhere to be found, which is strange. We checked the site ourselves, but only saw traces of blood…”

“You two can go,” Tony waved his hands and gestured towards the door. Without a word, they left.

Meanwhile, Candy was no longer crying. She stared into the thin air without blinking, as though she were in an eye contest with an invincible person. She began to smile slowly and mutter incomprehensible words.

Tony got scared and shook her violently, calling her name at intervals.

“Come to your senses, Candy! Snap out of it!”

He took Candy into a tight embrace, stroking her hair and rubbing her back, “I don't believe those men,” he said.

Candy withdrew from the hug and looked up at him, wiping the tears off her face with the hem of her dress. There was a flicker of hope on her face.

With raised eyebrows, she said, “What will you do, father? Ray's family will soon be here.”

Tony thought hard for some seconds, then said, “Let me call Mr. Moore. He can secretly investigate this for me while we delay the wedding as much as we can.”

Candy nodded repeatedly and stood up to get her father's phone. She was too weak to talk or do anything, so she just let her father do what he knows how to do best.

He called Mr. Moore and narrated everything that happened to him. With a promise to get back to him, Mr. Moore hung up.

A couple of minutes later, Tony's phone buzzed against his breast pocket and he picked it up.

“There was indeed an accident, and there's evidence that Danny died on the spot. We were able to find the dead bodies of two children and their parents who were also involved in the accident, but we are yet to find Danny's body.”

The phone was on a loudspeaker, so immediately Candy heard what Mr. Moore said. She slumped on the bed and began to breathe fast.

Memories of her mother's death flooded her mind. She remembered how she and her mother were kidnapped years ago, and confined in a very small room with zero air.

By the time her father came to their rescue, her mother had already suffocated and died. She survived and was rescued by her father and his police friend, Mr. Moore; although the kidnappers escaped.

However, ever since then, she has been traumatized and possessed extreme fear for little spaces. She was claustrophobic.

Candy temporarily zoned out, and it seemed as though she was reliving the whole incident again, hence the reason she was breathing fast.

Tony ended the call and ran to his daughter. With his hands on her shoulders, he said, “Take a deep breath, Candy. Remember not to think of any ugly incident.”

He turned her to face him, then continued, “Focus on my fingers and count with me… One, two, three… Focus on me, Candy.”

Within seconds, Candy began to breathe steadily, and her nerves became calm. However, she couldn't stop the tears from flowing down her cheeks.

“What are we going to do, father?”

“It's alright, everything would be fine.”

“First we lost our mother, and now Danny… Danny is gone! What are we going to do?”

There was a light knock on the door.

Candy stood and went to open the door.

It was Danny's chief bridesmaid, “Ray and his family are here. They're asking for the bride…”

Candy and Tony exchanged wary glances.

“We'll be there soon,” Tony said and faked a smile.

“Is something wrong? You both look like you've been crying…” Gia, the chief bridesmaid said.

“Tears of joy,” Candy said and laughed. “Today's a happy day, isn't it?

“It sure is. Where's Danny? I haven't seen her all day.”

“Oh! Well, Dan–Danny…” Tony stuttered, but Candy interrupted.

“Danny has been having a runny stomach since morning,” she knitted her brows and made a sad face, “We have it under control, though. She'll be fine and we'll soon be out.”

Gia nodded and without another word, left the room.

The moment she exited, Candy locked the door. With her back against the door, she asked, “What are we going to do now?”

Tony walked up to her. He placed his hands on her shoulders and squeezed them gently reassuringly.

“You, Candy, are going to take your sister's place. You'll marry Ray Edmond.”